The military enforced a tighter social distancing scheme on Friday banning troops from vacationing and taking off-installation trips as it is striving to stem the spread of the new coronavirus at barracks. Under the Level 2.5 social distancing guidance at barracks, all service members are not allowed to leave their bases for the next two weeks. Officers are restricted from having private meetings, while in-person religious gatherings and business trips are also banned. As for drills, necessar

South Korea has identified the remains of two soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War through DNA analysis after they were recovered from fiercely fought battle sites, the defense ministry said Friday. The remains of Song Hae-kyung were excavated last month from Arrowhead Ridge inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas in Cheorwon, according to the ministry. He is presumed to have died in July 1953 just 16 days before the armistice was signed. Excavation inside the DMZ b

The military decided to temporarily ban all troops from vacationing and taking off-installation trips after cluster infections were reported at an Army boot camp amid a nationwide spike in virus cases, the defense ministry said Thursday. Until Dec. 7, all troops will be subject to tightened social distancing rules in barracks, with vacationing and off-installation visits to be suspended starting Friday, according to the ministry. Officers are restricted from having private meetings, while i

A North Korean refugee was able to jump over the 3-meter fence along the inter-Korean border to the South without triggering the alarm because screws were loose on the fence’s sensors, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Thursday. The military revealed the initial finding of its internal investigation into the event early this month, in which a former gymnast in his 20s crossed the border on foot. Sensors on the border fences along the general outposts, standing south of the

South Korea’s military said Thursday it has banned all off-base travel for soldiers until Dec. 7. Officers are instructed to cancel or delay all non-duty meetings and outside activities. Vacations are suspended from Friday. The military’s antivirus rules, announced Tuesday for soldiers in the Greater Seoul area, were expanded to cover the rest of the nation after a cluster infection involving 70 service members -- mostly conscripts -- at a boot camp in northern Gyeonggi Province al

A newly upgraded interceptor missile, often dubbed the Korean equivalent of the US-made Patriot missile defense system, has been delivered to the military, the arms procurement agency said Thursday. Cheongung II, the upgraded version of the country's first indigenously developed medium-range surface-to-air guided missile of the same name, is equipped with multifunction radar to strike aircraft and missiles simultaneously, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. The Agenc

The military decided to temporarily ban all troops from vacationing and taking off-installation trips after cluster infections were reported at an Army boot camp amid a nationwide spike in virus cases, the defense ministry said Thursday. Until Dec. 7, all troops will be subject to tightened social distancing rules in barracks, with vacationing and off-installation visits to be suspended starting Friday, according to the ministry. Officers are restricted from having private meetings, while in-p

Senior defense officials of South Korea and Indonesia have held a videoconference and reaffirmed their commitment for cooperation in the defense industry, Seoul's arms procurement agency said Wednesday. During the annual consultations session held Tuesday, the two sides agreed to beef up cooperation to protect defense technologies and discussed other pending issues, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. Maj. Gen. Sung Il, an international cooperation officer at the agenc

Soldiers based in the Greater Seoul area could see their vacation and off-base leave suspended under the military’s tightened antivirus measures that went into effect Tuesday. The military began enforcing tougher rules in the capital for two weeks through Dec. 3, in line with government-imposed Level 2 social distancing guidelines in the area. The country, in the onset of a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, reported 349 cases in 24 hours ending at midnight on Monday. All servic

South Korea's arms procurement agency signed a contract commissioning a local defense firm to develop a robot capable of detecting and removing land mines and other explosives with indigenous technology, officials said Tuesday. Under the 18 billion-won ($16 million) project, Hanwha Defense plans to develop a robot capable of patrolling the mine-strewn Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border with North Korea and other dangerous areas, detecting and eliminating explosives, according to the Defense

The defense ministry on Tuesday began enforcing tougher social distancing rules for service members in the Seoul metropolitan area in line with the government's elevation of the antivirus scheme. Under the social distancing scheme of Level 2, vacations and one-day off-installation trips are primarily restricted. Visits to nightlife facilities continue to be banned, and service members are not allowed to visit religious facilities outside their bases, according to the ministry. The Level 2 gui

US National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien said Monday that the decadeslong relationship between Seoul and Washington will remain strong "whoever" is inaugurated as president in January. In a telephone conference with reporters during his visit to Manila, O'Brien also voiced hope that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will eventually live up to his denuclearization commitment, amid worries Pyongyang could undertake provocations to test the incoming Joe Biden administration. "What

The Ministry of National Defense said Monday it will showcase its latest defense technologies at an intergovernmental innovation expo held online from Tuesday to Dec. 3. Other ministries as well as state-run firms and municipalities are joining the event to share their achievements that have helped better people’s lives. The Army will reveal next-generation military equipment, including advanced combat uniforms. The uniforms are expected to be delivered to soldiers by 2024. The Navy is

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Lee Seong-yong and US chief of space operations Gen. John Raymond have held their first bilateral talks and agreed to boost cooperation to better respond to emerging space threats, the military said Sunday. During the meeting held in Hawaii on Thursday, Lee proposed setting up a regular consultation channel between the Air Force and the US Space Force for personnel exchanges, technology cooperation and information sharing, according to the Air Force. "Lee as

The US Forces Korea (USFK) decided not to issue its annual Korean Peninsula security report this year as it has to cope with the coronavirus pandemic and other challenging matters, officials said Sunday. The USFK, along with the United Nations Command and the Combined Forces Command, has issued the annual publication, titled "Strategic Digest," which provides major developments on the Korean Peninsula with regards to military and the bilateral alliance issues, such as North Korea's mi